Alberto Reguera: Red Uniform 1

Wang Xiaoluo: How Should I Love You 26

Exhibition Details

Exhibition

'Brief Encounters'

Date + Time

1 - 30 April, 2014

Location

Kairn Weber Gallery

Opening Reception

1 April, 2014 6pm - 9pm

Info

A fleeting moment. A passing glance. A quick connection – or maybe not. New works by Chinese artists Wang Xiaoluo and Yang Shewei invite us to witness and participate in the everyday, through everyday people. Their men and women at work and rest are particularly poignant emanating from a culture in which everyone is rushing ahead, and in which the individual is often overlooked. Here is an invitation to pause for a moment, and look closer.

Exhibition

'Brief Encounters'

Date + Time

1 - 30 April, 2014

Location

Kairn Weber Gallery

Opening Reception

1 April, 2014 6pm - 9pm

Info

A fleeting moment. A passing glance. A quick connection – or maybe not. New works by Chinese artists Wang Xiaoluo and Yang Shewei invite us to witness and participate in the everyday, through everyday people. Their men and women at work and rest are particularly poignant emanating from a culture in which everyone is rushing ahead, and in which the individual is often overlooked. Here is an invitation to pause for a moment, and look closer.

Yang’s security guards have a strong presence. Almost lifesize, they engage the viewer directly or imagine themselves unobserved. They are executed in fine detail by a mixture of ink washes and more precise strokes. In contrast, Wang’s women are observed in almost dreamlike sketches, using ink washes interspersed with sparse, thicker brush strokes. They stretch, doze or daydream, completely at ease with themselves and a world which may or may not be watching.

The spontaneity of the observed figures is enhanced by the medium of ink on paper. This ancient and highly treasured Chinese art form is rooted in calligraphy and comes to life in light, immediate and highly individualistic brush strokes. Additional references to classic Chinese arts appear in both artists’ works. Yang Shewei’s policemen stand out from a hanging scroll backdrop, while Wang Xiaoluo signs and personalizes her work using traditional seals.

It is this juxtaposition of ink on paper, a medium with over one thousand years of history, with subjects that are unashamedly of our world, of the here and now, that makes these works and this show truly unique. We invite you to share ‘Brief Encounters’ at Karin Weber Gallery.